Private Client

Accessing Your Own Land
Prior to the introduction of revised procedures (set out in regulations under section 68 of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 , which came into effect in July 2002), people who had to cross common land in order to reach their homes were sometimes...
Adoption Process Explained
The most important requirements for adoption are that the adopter must be over 21 years of age, the child to be adopted must be under the age of 18 and that joint applications to adopt can only be made by married couples and civil partners. Unmarried couples...
Are You a Sophisticated Investor?
In March 2005, the rules relating to approaching people regarding financial promotions were relaxed so that so called ‘sophisticated investors’ and high net worth individuals (HNWIs) could be more easily approached with a view to making...
Asset Valuation Problems - Chattels
When dealing with an estate, an increasing problem for executors is the valuation of assets in the form of the chattels of the deceased. In probate terminology, chattels are the ‘everyday’ assets such as furniture and ordinary possessions, as...
Avoiding Inheritance Tax with Discounted Gift Schemes
Inheritance tax (IHT) is payable at 40 per cent on the net value of a person’s estate above (2009/10 rates) £325,000 (the current nil rate band). It affects an increasing number of people owing to the rise in house prices in recent years. One...
Business Assets and Divorce
Divorce is seldom an easy business, but the problems are compounded when there is a family business involved. The division of the spoils has traditionally been the subject of a great deal of argument, but recent cases have at least clarified the thinking of...
Buying Abroad - Considerations
After another cold, wet summer and with dull economic prospects at home, you might be thinking of buying a property abroad or even making a permanent move to foreign climes. If so, as well as it being essential to take independent and high quality legal...
Buying a House and Consumer Protection
With the advent of Home Information Packs (HIPs), the appointment of an Ombudsman for Estate Agents (OEA), the laying down in statute of the duties of estate agents and the recent passing of the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007 (CEARA), a...
CGT and Shares in Estates Valuation Trap
In the UK, there are quite generous exemptions from Inheritance Tax (IHT) which apply to business assets. One problem with making use of such exemptions is the effect this may have on the subsequent value of the relevant assets for Capital Gains Tax (CGT)...
Capital Gains Tax for Owners of Two Homes
Ownership of two homes in the UK is becoming more commonplace as couples who both own houses marry, houses are inherited, parents buy houses for their children to live in, or people just buy a place in the country, either to let or to escape to at weekends. ...
Changing Wills For Benefit
A will expresses the final wishes of the deceased person and it is commonly thought that a will is irrevocable after death. However, provided everyone agrees, it is normally possible to vary a will provided that the application is made within two years of...
Charity Donations Through the Tax Return
From 2003-4 Self-Assessment Tax Returns have included a facility to enable individuals to donate some or all of any tax repayment to a chosen charity. Participating charities have signed up with the Inland Revenue and been allocated a unique code, which is...
Charity Trustees - Guidance
The regime governing charities has been progressively tightened up over the years, making the sort of scandals that were once not uncommon much more of a rarity. This means that trustees now have to adopt a more professional attitude to the management of a...
Check Your Home Insurance Policy
Increasing numbers of people are spending substantial periods of time away from their homes on account of working away, having a second home or for any of a number of other reasons. Houses can also frequently be empty for substantial periods after the death...
Child Custody Explained
Arrangements over the custody of children (called residence arrangements by lawyers) after the breakdown of a relationship are usually best decided without the intervention of the court. Unfortunately, it is not always possible for the two parties to...
Child Maintenance Explained
In spite of reforms introduced in 2003, the Child Support Agency (CSA) was heavily criticised for failing to meet its objectives. With nearly £4 billion worth of unpaid child maintenance estimated to be outstanding, clearly something had to be done....
Civil Partnerships - What they Mean for You
The first Civil Partnerships were formed on 21 December 2005, after the Civil Partnerships Act 2004 came into effect on 5 December 2005. Same-sex marriages contracted abroad, however, have been recognised as valid civil partnerships from 5 December...
Cohabitation Agreements - Protection for Unmarried Couples
One of the most common myths in English law is that there is such a thing as a ‘common law marriage’. It simply doesn’t exist and this misapprehension has led the Law Commission to suggest proposals giving additional rights to cohabiting...
Cohabitees and Death - Who Can Claim?
When one member of a cohabiting couple dies, it can come as an unpleasant surprise to the bereaved partner to discover that not all of their late partner’s estate will pass to them in the absence of a will. It is only when this happens that many people...
Compensation for Loss of a Chance
Most claims for damages are claims for damages or losses which have actually happened. For example, if a lorry mounted the pavement and smashed a garden wall, the claim would be for the cost of restoring the wall to its former condition. The law relating to...
Correcting Your Credit Rating
Most people require credit at some time, whether it is in the form of a credit card, a loan or an overdraft. However careful you are, it is possible to find yourself blacklisted for credit purposes. When you apply for credit, the lender will apply to either...
Current Laws on Electrical Work
Since 1st January 2005, all electrical work carried out in dwellings has had to comply with part P of the Building Regulations and be carried out by a person who is competent to do the work. All work which involves adding a new circuit to a dwelling needs...
Divorce and Foreign Nationality
Approximately one in six marriages in the European Union is between persons of different nationalities. Not surprisingly, approximately one in six divorces also involves spouses of different nationalities. This can make for some complexity on divorce as to...
Divorce and Money
When it comes to dealing with money and divorce, it is important to know what has to be taken into account and the powers available to arrive at fair decisions. For most couples, the basic problem is how to finance two separate households from income and...
Divorce and the Family Home?
Family break-up is always complicated and when there is a property involved, things can get very complex indeed. In principle, when a couple are cohabiting (not married or in a civil partnership) the property belongs as of right to whoever is shown on the...